African Science in School Curriculum

Paper Presented at the NSTA National Convention,
Boston, Massachusetts, March 26-29, 1992

African Science, African and African-American Scientists and the School Science Curriculum

by Brian Murfin

Abstract

The intent behind this study is to help remedy a serious lack of
knowledge common to most Americans. How many college graduates could
name more than a few important African-American scientists? How many
Americans could describe any scientific achievements which occurred in
Africa? This ignorance has serious implications for the self-esteem for
a very important part of America's population. How are young African-
Americans to believe that they could ever become scientists, when they,
along with the rest of the U.S. population, are only presented with
stereotyped myths of the African continent? The rich natural science of
the Kalahari bushmen, (properly called the San), could make valuable
contributions to the knowledge of many of our so-called experts, most of
whom do their research in "ivory towers", on all but sterile campuses,
surrounded by ribbons of steel and concrete.

The possibilities for research in African Science are almost endless.
The diversity of cultures, histories, technologies, animal and plant
species is almost unbelievable. Most of this potential and wealth of
knowledge never sees the light of day in the United States. The primary
purpose of this paper is to encourage science teachers to incorporate
examples of African science and of important African-American scientists
into their science lessons and to thus teach children to have equal
respect for the accomplishments of all races. We must stimulate all
children to become free thinkers and to realize that science is a part
of every culture worldwide. Good science comes in many guises and a
failure to teach our children this will be to their ultimate detriment.

It is well known that African-Americans are underrepresented in the
sciences and that there are many factors which contribute to the
problem. In a survey of African-Americans reported by Pearson (1985, p.
175) the following reasons were given for the low numbers of African-
Americans in science: (1) lack of early encouragement and motivation
(24.4 percent); (2) lack of financial support and limited
opportunities (15.1 percent); (3) limited recruitment (11.2 percent)
and institutional racism (11.2 percent); (4) lack of tradition (8.7
percent); and (5) science perceived as too difficult and unrewarding
and lack of role models (8.3 percent each).

Some of these problems could be remedied by reform of existing science
curricula. Although this paper will only deal with science related to
Africa, it is this writer's opinion that the science of all major
cultures should be represented in every science curriculum.

Many people might ask why the contributions of Africa should be included
in an American science curriculum. Carl Sandburg (1979) related a
dialogue between a white American and an American Indian which
illustrates the need for multicultural education:

The white man drew a small circle in the sand and told the red man,
"This is what the Indian knows," and drawing a big circle around the
small one, "this is what the white man knows." The Indian then took the
stick and swept an immense ring around both circles and said "this is
where the white man and the red man know nothing.

The primary goal of a pluralistic curriculum process is to present a
truthful and meaningful rendition of the whole human experience. This
is not a matter of ethnic quotas in the curriculum for "balance"; it is
purely and simply a question of validity. Ultimately, if the curriculum
is centered in truth, it will be pluralistic, for the simple fact is
that human culture is the product of the struggles of all humanity, not
the possession of a single racial or ethnic group.

James A. Banks (1992, p. 32) states that "Multicultural education is an
education for freedom...One of its major aims is to close the gap
between the Western democratic ideals of equality and justice and
societal practices that contradict these ideals..." Banks (p. 33) goes
on to say that "Western traditionalists hold the balance of power,
financial resources, and the top positions in the mass media, in schools
and universities, government, and in the publishing industry...the
reality is that the curriculum in the nation's schools and universities
is largely Western in its concepts, paradigms and content." In 1990 one
in four Americans was a person of color while by the year 2020 nearly
half of America's students will be persons of color (Banks, 1992, p.
33). Since the composition of America's schools is changing so rapidly
it seems obvious that some changes might be in order. Banks (1992, p.
35) asserts that multicultural education is also very important for
students who are members of the dominant culture in America because:
Each of us becomes culturally encapsulated during our socialization in
childhood. We accept the assumptions of our own community culture,
internalize the values, views of the universe, misconceptions and
stereotypes... Mainstream Americans have few opportunities to become
free of cultural assumptions and perspectives that are monocultural,
that devalue African and Asian cultures, and that stereotype people of
color and people who are poor, or who are victimized in other ways.
These mainstream Americans often have an inability to function
effectively within other American cultures and lack the ability and
motivation to experience and benefit from cross-cultural participation
and relationships. Numerous distinguished scholars believe that Africa
has made unique contributions to science (Van Sertima, 1984). In fact,
some would go so far as to say that without the contributions of
Africans, Western science could not have developed to the point it has
today. Banks (1992, p. 35) cites authorities who present linguistic and
archaelogical evidence "...that important parts of Greek civilization
(technologies, language, deities and architecture) originated in ancient
Africa." The history of science as it has been taught in schools has
reflected an almost entirely white, European, male viewpoint. Females
and people of all cultures except Europeans have been excluded from the
history of science. If one delves deeply enough, innumerable examples
of scientific endeavors among Africans, African-Americans, females and
people of other cultures can be found. Many persons believe that
science as practiced by Africans, females and other cultures may hold
the answers to some of the intractable problems Western science has
created. Molefi Asante, the leading proponent of Afrocentrism, states
that "Western science, with its notions of knowledge of phenomena for
the sake of knowledge and its emphasis on technique and efficiency is
not deep enough for our humanistic and spiritual viewpoint" (Asante,
1988, p. 80). How ironic it is. Many europeans view African culture as
primitive while some Africans question the whole foundations of modern
Western science. The following quote from Asante (1988, p. 81) sums up
the Afrocentric attitude towards science: The self is the center of
the world, animating it, and making it living and personal. Neither
materiality nor spirituality are illusory. This is why the idea in
western science of progress is troubling. Progress for the West, is not
more knowledge, but more technique. How to do it faster, smoother,
longer, louder and with greater exploitation becomes the pass-key to a
techno-scientific future. Progress in an Afrocentric manner is related
to the development of human personality because we are the source of
life for the material and the spiritual; when we become more conscious
of ourselves we shall be advanced and make progress. Asante also
points out that recent discoveries related to energy, gravity, and
quarks can be better explained using non-western ideas. He gave the
example of the search for the smallest particle which has continued from
atoms to electrons to quarks and the Afrocentric realization by some
scientists that they may never find a discrete answer to this question.
According the Asante (p. 45) "Nothing is more right for you than the
way derived from your own historical experiences." Perhaps an African
perspective on science would prove more appealing to African-American
students since it may be more compatible with African-American culture.

Sam Bajah (1980, p. 6) defines African science as a "systematic, complex
and exclusive traditional process (commonly noticed in a number of
African cultures), in which an attempt is made to describe, understand,
predict and control nature." Bajah (1980, p. 25) asks ...is there such
a thing as African science? To answer that I would like to begin by
attesting to the fact that unequivocally, there is a science in Africa;
activities and nature which call for understanding and explanations
occur in Africa just as in other parts of the world...we also have
traditional thinkers in Africa who also through their years of training
attempt to unfold the truth in nature.

Nwankwo Ezeabasili (1977, p. xi) states that African science is "African
account of nature and how it works." He goes on to say that "...the
black African has an authentic scientific culture." But Ezeabasili (p.
52) adds the interesting qualifying statement "When I talk of African
science I am not referring to things that could be discovered by common
sense". He follows this with the famous quote "There are more things in
heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."
According to Ezeabasili (p. 78):

Every culture has its own science which is a part of its total symbolic
expression and so is inseparable from its architecture, art, sculpture,
and even religion...The questions which concern scientists of a
particular culture, the choice of them, the framing of the questions and
the methods of thought are determined by the particular preoccupation of
the people and the way in which the universe presents itself to their
understanding. and in addition (p. 87): The truth is that some
phenomena are regular and some are not. Western science selects as its
subject matter those that are regular and then finds it can predict
their behavior. But this is no basis for concluding that irregular and
irrational phenomena are not important or trivial. He believes that
both Western and African science have demonstrated their validity
through their utility in various situations. According to Ezeabasili
(p. xii) "Western peoples have simply absorbed only those aspects of
Egyptian, Roman and Arab science which appeal to a people with a
mechanistic frame of mind...Western science like the Roman Catholic
church which I had left, is only a partial account of the truth. Both
have one thing in common--dogmatism."

In this paper African science will be considered to be a way of
describing and explaining nature which has arisen within an African
context and which does not rely on the purported objectivism of Western
science. An African scientist considers the whole of a problem and does
not believe it possible to isolate and control variables in all
situations. African science accepts paradoxes and works with them. A
paramount consideration is the consequences of actions and a belief that
humankind must coexist with nature and not attempt to conquer it. M.B.
Ogunniyi (1988) compared the traditional world view with that of Western
science. According to Ogunniyi ( p. 3-4), "The African concept of
causality, chance and/or probability is based upon a different logic
from that of science." Ezeabasili (p. xvii) says this about cause and
effect and science:

The belief in the laws of cause and effect is very strong in Western
culture. But the rest of the world throughout the centuries has never
bothered about these laws... the same cause can have different effects;
...effects may be mistaken for causes; and finally ... the mere fact of
being posterior in time does not make a thing an effect Ogunniyi (p.
4) gives an example of how African and Western science would attempt to
investigate the phenomenon of malaria. A Western scientist would search
for the causative agent, e.g. the plasmodium, and the vector, the
Anopheles mosquito. An African scientist would ask why that person in
particular and not another was bitten by a disease carrying mosquito, in
the hopes of preventing a recurrence of the event in the future. He
goes on to say that "Science takes chance for granted and rarely
analyzes it, except perhaps to compile its likelihood of occurrence, but
not why a chance or accident has occurred." Oginniyi also feels that
Western science is more concerned with things, i.e. inanimate objects,
while African science places more emphasis on people. According to
Ogunniyi (p. 4) there are four important myths which surround Western
science:

1) success is the result of rationalism and empiricism;

2) objectivity exists in science;

3) there is only one way of "coping with experience";

4) a "mechanistic view of the world" provides an accurate explanation
of the way the world works.

Ogunniyi (p. 5) makes another important point by stating that modern
science's achievements are a result of a failure to follow "evidence
closely" and instead "trusting abstractions to guide the control of and
selection and extrapolation from the evidence under consideration". One
wonders what a practising African scientist would think of our
ubiquitous use of models. At times, proponents of African science make
arguments which are very similar to such varied persons as philosphers
of science, ethnomethodologists, critical theorists, chaos theorists and
assorted other post-positivists. Ezeabasili (p. 59) continues that "If
we apply Western methodology at this stage we shall never discover
anything new because the type of questions which a science can ask are
already embodied in its methodology." A statement by Ezeabasili sums up
a major dilemma confronting Western science, "The so-called laws of
nature are man-made, and nature is not bound to obey them" Ezeabasili
(p. xviii). African science and Western science both have their uses and
misuses. There is overlap between the two and they are not mutually
exclusive. The major problem lies with the denial by Western science of
the validity of Africa's contributions. Because every culture's way of
viewing the world is different it seems probable that every culture may
have developed unique strategies for doing science. Some of these may
just possibly fill in the gaps in others. If the scientific knowledge
of all cultures could be pooled and regarded with equal respect, the
world would undoubtedly be an immeasurably richer place. A major
sticking point with regard to the legitimization of African science is
the supposed lack of African contributions. Bajah (1980, p. 15-16) gives
one reason for this seeming absence of African contributions. He states
that Whatever has gone by the terminology African science has been so
exclusive that it makes nonsense of any notion about the freedom to
information. The effectiveness of a number of processes now classified
as African science depends tenaciously on who is performing--
personality...parents are expected to pass on their knowledge of
traditional herbs to some carefully selected children in their
family...Assuming that this contention of selective transfer is true,
then the amount of knowledge which has perished will be enormous. One
reason generally advanced for this agelong, exclusive right by
individuals to knowledge was the need to protect (against) the
widespread and uncontrolled use of the knowledge.

Another possible reason for the relative lack of visible achievements is
the humanistic nature of African science. If most of an African
scientist's time and energy were devoted to matters which personally
affect humans such as disease, mental illness, social affairs etc. while
less interest was shown in mechanistic manipulations of inanimate
objects, then it is no wonder that the record of African science's
achievements is difficult to assess. If traditional doctors were able
to cure a certain illness centuries ago, what kind of record would be
found today? Determined investigation and new ways of thinking will be
needed to uncover the accomplishments of past civilizations. This is
slowly being remedied by the painstaking research of many historians and
scientists. Another part of the problem lies with the treatment
Africans received during their years in slavery. During and before this
time Africans did make scientific discoveries and invent things but
because they were regarded as inferior sorts of humans their
accomplishments were buried in the footnotes of history or remained
ignored or unreported. Contributions of Ancient African Civilizations
to Science In Ivan Van Sertima's (1984) book Blacks in Science: Ancient
and Modern, countless examples of African science from articles by
several different authors are given. A few examples will be listed
below for each of the major scientific disciplines.

Chemistry

1. 1,500 to 2,000 years ago near Lake Victoria, carbon steel was made
in blast furnaces. The temperature achieved in the furnaces, 1,8000C,
was much higher than was managed in Europe until modern times (Van
Sertima, 1984, p. 9).

2. Fire was first used 1,400,000 years ago in Chesowanja, near Lake
Baringo in Kenya (Van Sertima, 1984, p. 293). Physics and Earth Science

Astronomy

1. The Dogon of Mali had an excellent understanding of the solar system
and the universe 700 years ago. The Dogon had detailed knowledge of a
white dwarf companion star to Sirius A which was not visible to the
naked eye. Western scientists stated that there was no way that the
Dogon could have uncovered this knowledge on their own and that it must
have been supplied to them by a visiting European or an extra-
terrestrial visitor. (Van Sertima, 1984, p. 13)

2. The Yoruba tribe had an exceedingly complex number system based on
twenty. (Van Sertima, 1984, p. 15)

3. An 8,000 year old bone found in Zaire, the Ishango bone, covered
with series of notches is thought to be the world's earliest number
system. (Van Sertima, 1984, p. 14)

4. There was a very accurate calendar system in Eastern Africa by the
first millenium B.C. (Lynch & Robbins, 1984, p. 55).

5. A megalithic site similar to stonehenge dating to 300 B.C. was found
in northwest Kenya. Its nineteen basalt pillars were aligned extremely
accurately with the stars and constellations (Lynch & Robbins, 1984, p.
51).

6. Beatrice Lumpkin discusses the development of the pyramids from
African technology, "...from mud bricks to huge stone monoliths..."
(Lumpkin, 1984, p. 67). The Egyptians of that time possessed
sophisticated mathematical skill which was the foundation of the western
science still to come.

7. A model of a glider dated to the 4th or 3rd century B.C. was found
in Egypt. The structure of the object was most definitely
aerodynamically designed (Messiha et al, 1984, p. 92).

8. An iron-ore mine in Swaziland, the oldest found in the world, was
dated as 43,000 years old. The ore specularite was used as a cosmetic
and pigment (Zaslavsky, 1984, p. 110).

9. The concepts of distance, area, weight, volume and time were all
used by the Egyptians. Egypt also invented standards, units and methods
of measurement (Pappademos, 1984, p. 184).

11. Africans developed technology to build sea-worthy boats and the
ability to navigate over long expanses of ocean . There is ample
evidence to suggest that African explorers reached South and Central
America long before Columbus made his journeys (Malloy, 1984, p. 163).

5. The Africans had a smallpox vaccine long before Jenner invented it.
They used the same principle Jenner did and scratched a smallpox pustule
with a thorn and then scratched themselves to acquire immunity to the
disease (Van Sertima, 1984, p. 23).

6. Africans were skilled surgeons. In 1879 in East Africa, a European
observed an African doctor carry out a caesarian section succesfully,
using antiseptic techniques, before this type of operation had been done
successfully in Europe (Van Sertima, 1984, p. 23).

7. Camille Yarbrough (1984) traced the development of cosmetic science
in Africa. One of the results of the practice of cicatrization by
African women, "...cutting and plucking their skin with sharp stone,
twigs, thorns, crystal splinters or knives and then sprinkling the open
wounds with ask, Africans stimulated their bodies to create protective
antibodies and to resist disease" (Yarbrough, 1984, p. 90). According
to Yarbrough (1984, p. 91) the reflected glare from the waters of the
flooded Nile led to the invention of eyeshadow "...applying soothing
salves to the eyelids and brows and then dusting the eyelids with
powdered lead, copper, or any substance that could relieve the strain on
the eyes..." In addition, African women invented wigs and breath
fresheners, produced polished mirrors made of copper and jewlery, made
perfumes and scented oils and pomades, and used henna to stain the
fingernails and toenails (Yarbrough, 1984).

8. Beatrice Lumpkin (1988) and Margaret Alic (1986) have both described
the life of Hypatia, " For fifteen centuries Hypatia was often
considered to be the only female scientist in history. Hypatia is the
earliest woman scientist whose life is well documented" (Alic, 1986, p.
41). Lumpkin provides evidence that Hypatia was not Greek and instead
was an Egyptian and thus of African origin. It seems that contrary to
the customs of Greek women at that time, "Hypatia remained unmarried and
moved freely and publicly in her scientific pursuits" (Lumpkin, 1988, p.
155). Hypatia lectured on mathematics, philosophy, physics and
astronomy (Lumpkin, 1988). She wrote important treatises on Algebra and
Conic sections. Hypatia is credited with designing an astrolabe, a
water still, an instrument to measure water level and an hydrometer
(Alic, 1986, p. 44). Hypatia refused to convert to Christianity and in
415 A.D. she was murdered brutally by Christian fanatics (Lumpkin,
1988).

9. Margaret Alic (1986) in her book, Hypatia's Heritage, discusses
women in science. Alic asserts that women were the first botanists.
She attributes the following accomplishments to the women of prehistory,
many of whom were undoubtedly African:

-methods of gathering, preparing and preserving food

-construction of devices to carry food and infants

-sticks, levers, hand axes for digging and processing plants

-invented the mortar and pestle Alic (1986, p. 13) states that "The tools developed by
prehistoric women are still in evidence in modern-day chemistry laboratories."

-butchering of animals, tanning of hides

-production of needles, use of dyes

-drying, storage of herbs for use as medicines

-discovery of the uses of plants through trial and error and experimentation

-clay pottery, firing of clay in kilns

-domestication of crops

-selective breeding of plants

Alic (1986, p. 15) bases her claims on the assumption that "...evidence
from the early scientific work of women can be traced..." from "oral
traditions." Alic (1986, p. 15) goes on to say that Neolithic women
were often thought to be possessed of magical powers, not only because
of their ability to give birth, but also because of their skills in the
domestic sciences - manufacturing, pottery, agriculture, the
domestication of animals and healing. It was these achievements that
early cultures personified in their goddesses.

10. Alic (1986, p. 21) relates that in the Kahun medical papyrus, women
"...diagnosed pregnancy, guessed at the sex of the unborn child (if the
mother's face was green it would be a boy), tested for sterility and
treated dysmenorrhoea (irregular menstruation). Women surgeons
performed caesarian sections, removed cancerous breasts, and set bones
with splints."

12. Cleopatra wrote on gynecology, obstetrics, cosmetics and skin
diseases (Alic, 1986, p. 33). Nkwankwo Ezeabasili (1977) wrote at length
on the practice of medicine in Africa. Although African doctors do not
have an Hippocratic oath, there is an unwritten but observed code of
ethics. According to Ezeabasili (p. 32) a doctor should "...charge a
patient according to his income..." there are "...no fixed fees for a
disease", payment is by installment and in full only upon the successful
cure of the disease, and a doctor is expected to reject a patient if he
or she is incapable of treating a certain case. In addition, a doctor
is required to taste any medicine he or she has prepared, before
administering it to a patient. According to Ezeabalisi (p. 36)
traditional African beliefs of causes of disease may be grouped into the
following categories:

Ezeabalisi feels that another important difference between African and
Western medicine is that animal parts have great medicinal value in
Africa while in the West their use is relatively insignificant. It
should be pointed out that many important therapeutic drugs have been
extracted from animals, for example anti-blood clotting substances from
leeches. African doctors also have different notions of poisons and
antidotes. Ezeabasili (43) states that "Traditional healers claim that
complex poisons require simple antidotes, and simple poisons such as
hydrocyanic acid (from fungus and tubers) need complex antidotes." It
is also asserted that African medicine is very effective with many
mental disorders which fail to respond to Western therapy.

Ezeabasili blames the rise of drug-resistant strains of bacteria in
Africa on abuse of Western medicine. Ezeabasili (p. 58) states that
"The philosophy is basically wrong. Man is trying to exterminate
microbes. Also, antibiotics are known to have dangerous side effects.
Streptomycin damages the eighth cranial nerve. Patients on a long-term
course of isonaizid or tetracycline have to be constantly watched for
leukaemia." Ezeabasili (p. 58) argues that a better approach "...is that
man should seek to come to terms with bacteria and live in a sort of
mutual symbiosis or even immunity. This requires a good understanding
of man's psychological and physiological defenses against diseases."

As an example of the skepticism by which traditional medicine is
received by Western science, Ezeabasili (p. 74) cites a interesting
account by a British surgeon, a Dr. Esdaile, who attempted to publish
accounts of 300 cases of major surgical operations carried out in India
using hypnotism as the only anaesthetic. Major medical journals
declined to publish the results and in addition "...fellow surgeons said
they believed the Indians bore the excruciating pain just to please
them" (Ezeabasili, p. 74).

Chiekh Diop is an expert on ancient Egyptian cilization. In Diop's
article Africa's Contribution to World Civilization: The Exact Sciences
(1985) he relates some of the sophisticated science Africans were doing
long ago. 1,700 years before Archimede's time the Egyptians were able
to calculate the surface area of a hemisphere and the volume of a
cylinder using a fairly accurate value of Pi, i.e. 3.16. They were also
able to determine the volume of a pyramid's frustrum. Among other
things, Egyptians were able to calculate square roots, they used
imaginary numbers and they invented trigonometry and Pythagoras' theorem
long before Pythagoras did. Algebra was also a product of Egyptian
mathematicians. The Egyptians used levers, inclined planes and screws
long before Archimede's "discoveries" of these same concepts. Diop
wonders if it was a coincidence that Archimedes and other famous Greek
scientists such as Socrates, Aristotle and Plato studied extensively in
Egypt?

According to Diop (1985) the Egyptians used siphons to transfer liquids
and thus had knowledge of air pressure. Diop relates that Egyptian
medicine was very sophisticated for its time. The Egyptians were
skilled bone surgeons and they gave detailed accounts of brain injuries.
They had located areas of the brain for specific body functions three
thousand years before the European, Broca did. In addition, Egyptians
discovered the circulation of the blood and the workings of the heart
long before the Englishman Harvey.

John Pappademos in The Newtonian Synthesis in Physical Science and its
Roots in the Nile Valley (1985) discusses the origins of Newton's
theories. Pappademos maintains that Newton's work was based on work on
mathematics, astronomy and mechanics that was begun in ancient times.
This led to Egyptian science which in turn influenced scientists such as
Kepler, Copernicus, Decartes and Galileo who in turn provided the basis
for Newton's work. Pappademos gives the example of Galileo's
discoveries to show how this occurred. The name of Philoponus was
frequently found in Galileo's notebooks. It turns out that this ancient
Alexandrian scientist had demonstrated and subsequently reported that
heavier objects did not fall faster than lighter objects. Galileo
himself reported that he had studied the works of Egyptian, Greek and
Muslim scientists.

Pappademos (1985, p. 93) states that "...Newton also was thoroughly
familiar with the scientific works of much more ancient writers,
especially those of Africa, whose opinions he held in high esteem and
from which he drew to support his own arguments." Newton gave as
examples the atomic theory and heliocentric theory of the solar system
as two ancient theories which he utilized. Pappademos (1985, p. 95)
also says that Newton's "...law of universal gravitation had been
anticipated two thousand years earlier by the Pythagorean philosophers,
and this was the real meaning of the "harmony of the spheres"".
Pappademos (1985) gave some other examples of Egyptian contributions to
science such as the 365 day calendar based on astronomical observations,
the sundial, water clocks, a device to measure stellar azimuths,
knowledge of constellations, the methods used to precisely align the
pyramids and temples, astronomy texts, prediction of eclipses, discovery
of the spherical shape of the earth, precession of the equinoxes and the
heliocentric theory.

The preceding descriptions were sketchy but there are well documented
descriptions of all the contributions made by Africans that have been
discussed so far.

The contributions to science of present day Africans are many and varied
and will not be discussed in this paper. A useful reference on this
topic is Science and Technology in Africa by John W. Forje if further
information is desired.

Contributions of African-Americans to Science Even though African-
Americans have found themselves struggling to survive during much of
their history in America they have still managed to produce great
scientists. Because of the limited scope of this paper only a small
sampling of important African-American scientists will be presented. In
pre-civil war times there were basically two categories of African-
Americans, free blacks and slaves. Both however were not living in
conditions conducive to becoming a man or woman of science, i.e. being
independently wealthy and well-educated. Norbert Rillieux, born in 1806,
was a famous engineer who invented a multiple-effect vacuum evaporator
which converted sugar cane juice into white sugar crystals (Hayden,
1984, p. 222).

Lewis Temple, born in 1839, was a blacksmith who produced whaling
harpoons. He invented a harpoon known as the "Temple toggle" which
revolutionized the whaling industry (Hayden, 1984, p. 224).

The most important black inventors after the Civil War were Elijah
McCoy, Jan Matzeliger, Granville T. Woods, Lewis Latimer and Garret A.
Morgan. McCoy invented a lubricating cup "that fed oil to machinery
while it was still running...The confidence inspired by the reliability
of his lubricating devices was such that the phrase "the real McCoy" was
coined in regard to machinery that contained the McCoy device..."
(Hayden, 1984, p. 220). He received 25 patents on various inventions.
Jan Matzeliger invented a shoe-making machine which dramatically changed
the shoe manufacturing industry (Hayden, 1984, p. 220).

Granville T. Woods obtained "...over 35 patents on electro- mechanical
devices which he sold to American Bell Telephone, General Electric and
Westinghouse Air Brake." (Hayden, 1984, p. 220). His ideas were used in
electric railways, telegraphy, telephones, automatic cut-offs for
electric circuits and electric motor regulators. His most important
invention was the "Railway induction telegraph" (Hayden, 1984, p. 223).

Lewis Latimer had an illustrious career in science. He made the first
drawings of Alexander Graham Bell's telephone. He invented longer-
lasting carbon filaments for lamps. He worked extensively with Edison.
Latimer supervised the initial installation of lighting in New York,
Philadelphia and London, England( Clarke, 1984, p. 230). Latimer also
wrote the first textbook on incandescent lighting (Hayden, 1984, p.
222).

Garret A. Morgan (b. 1877) invented a smoke inhalator which he, his
brother and two other volunteers used to rescue several men who were
trapped in a tunnel under Lake Erie after an explosion. He sold his
invention of the automatic stop signal to the General Electric Company
for $40,000. He was awarded a gold medal by the city of Cleveland, Ohio
for his devotion to public safety.

Louise Meriwether's book (1972) The Heart Man describes the life of Dr.
Daniel Hale Williams. Williams opened America's first hospital for
blacks and whites. In 1893 Dr. Williams performed the first successful
open heart surgery on a man who had been stabbed in the chest during a
fight. Later Williams headed a government hospital in Washington, D.C.
Benjamin Banneker was an expert mathematician born in 1731. When he was
22 years old he constructed a famous wooden clock which kept almost
perfect time for more than twenty years (Allen, 1971, p. 41). He
calculated and published an almanac for ten years which Thomas Jefferson
later sent to the Academy of Science in Paris. Scholars from all over
the U.S. sent their difficult mathmematical problems to Benjamin
Banneker. In 1876 Edward Alexander Bouchet obtained a PhD in physics
from Yale University (Pearson and Bechtel, 1989, p. 13). Bouchet was
the first black to receive a doctorate from an American university.

There are too many contemporary African-American scientists to mention
all of them here so again only a few will be selected and discussed.
Contributions of African-Americans to Space Science Lt. Col. Guy Bluford
was the first black American in space (Graves and Van Sertima, 1984, p.
245). Isaac Gilliam IV was the Director of Dryden's Flight Research
Center at Edwards Air Force base and subsequently director of Shuttle
Operations (Graves and Van Sertima, 1984, p. 246). Robert E. Shurney was
an aeronautical engineer involved with Skylab (Graves and Van Sertima,
1984, p. 249). He designed the commodes used in Skylab, a Solar Array
Blanket Tube and aluminum tires for the moon buggy. Patricia Cowings
studies space sickness and weightlessness (Graves and Van Sertima, 1984,
p. 253). Christine Darden is an aerospace engineer at NASA's Langley
Research center working on eliminating sonic booms in supersonic and
hypersonic aircraft (Graves and Van Sertima, 1984, p. 255). George
Carruthers is an astrophysicist who designed the Far Ultraviolet
Camera/Spectrograph used on the Apollo 16 mission (Spady, 1984, p. 258).
Elmer Samuel Imes established that "...quantum theory could be extended
to include rotational states of molecules" (Spady, 1984, p. 263). Dr.
Ronald E. McNair earned his doctorate from MIT in 1976. In February
1984 he became the second black astronaut in space. Dr. McNair was
killed during the Challenger disaster on January 28, 1986.

Dr. Lloyd Quartermain worked on the Manhattan Project during the
development of the atomic bomb (Van Sertima, 1984, p. 266). In addition,
he worked on fluoride chemistry, synthetic blood and he was a
spectroscopist. African-American contributions to biology and medicine
Ernest Just was born in 1883 and he later became an eminent cell
biologist who did most of his work at the Marine Biological Laboratories
at Woods Hole (Pearson, 1989, p. 15). Just's area of interest was in
the cytology and embryology of the eggs of marine animals. Kenneth
Manning wrote a detailed biography of Just's life including descriptions
of his scientific accomplishments and his trials and tribulations
because of the color of his skin. Percy Julian, born in 1899,
discovered cortisone which was used to treat arthritis (Pearson, 1989,
p. 15). He also synthesized a compound called phystigmine which was
used to treat glaucoma. The research of Charles Drew on blood plasma is
thought to have saved many lives during World War II (Pearson, 1989, p.
16). Drew also set up the first blood bank in England. Charles Turner
studied animal behavior and a phenomenon characteristic of insects
called "Turner's circling" is named after him (Pearson, 1989, p. 16).
William A. Hinton developed the Hinton Test for syphilis (Pearson, 1989,
p. 16). He was also the first black professor of medicine at Harvard.
Lloyd A. Hall developed "curing salts for processing and preserving
meats" (Pearson, 1989, p. 16). Louis Tompkins Wright developed an
intradermal method of smallpox vaccination and worked on drug therapy
for cancer. Dr. Theodore K. Lawless (1892-1971) was one of the world's
leading skin specialists and a philanthropist. This list of African-
American scientists could go on and on. Two excellent sources on this
topic are Blacks in Science: Astophysicist to Zoologist by Hattie
Carwell (1981) and Black Contributors to Science and Energy Technology
by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Public Affairs (1979). As
can be seen there is a wealth of material available which could be used
in a secondary school science curriculum. Integration of African
Science into the Secondary School Science Curriculum Any successful
introduction of African science into the secondary schools will have to
be designed with great care. I believe that the best approach would be
to prepare a list of key, uncontested "facts" about Africa, African-
Americans and science which most scholars could agree on. A panel of
experts could validate the usefulness and genuineness of all potential
topics to be included in the science syllabi. These would then be used
as appropriate throughout the different science courses. These key
topics would have to be hammered home repeatedly throughout the grades
K-12 until inventors such as Latimer, Rillieux and McCoy become
household words just like famous European inventors. For every unit in
science the teacher should have available examples of African scientists
or scientific developments, American scientists, women scientists,
Chinese scientists etc. from which to choose to enrich his or her
lessons. Textbooks will have to change. Every science book should have
photos of people of all colors and kinds doing science. It should be
stressed that the Western scientific method is one very successful path
on the way to knowledge and that other cultures have developed equally
valid means of explaining and dealing with the world which will
complement modern science and make it even more effective.

If curriculum reform is to succeed, parental support will have to be
enlisted and the public as a whole will have to learn these new aspects
of science. Above all, the curriculum will have to be pretested and
made as non-controversial as possible to avoid the fate of Jerome
Bruner's Man A Course of Study. Because of the United States' diverse
ethnic mix we have a wonderful chance to bring about a synthesis of the
different cultural approaches to science and to teach it to our
children. If this could be done it would free many minds from the
shackles of our male-dominated, white, european mode of doing science.
Who knows what discoveries might be made if we unleashed the mind power
of the whole human race instead of depending on the views of a small but
powerful minority, the white male?

Bibliography

Alic, Margaret. (1986). Hypatia's Heritage A History of Women
in Science from Antiquity to the Late Nineteenth Century.
London: The Women's Press Limited.